Maher Outpaces Competition in Assembly Race Fundraising

MAHER FAR OUTPACES THE COMPETITION IN 101ST ASSEMBLY DISTRICT RACE FUNDRAISINGWalden Mayor rakes in over $26,000 in donations showing strong community support

The numbers are in! Candidates running for the newly created 101st Assembly District filed their financial reports with the New York State Board of Elections this week and the numbers show only one candidate in this race has the strong support of rank and file voters, Assembly candidate Brian Maher.

Maher’s campaign took in over $26,000 in donations between the January financial statement and the report filed this week showing strong grass roots support. Nearly 2/3 of donations came from individual donors with over 85% of the donors contributing $100 or less. Since Maher started an exploratory committee to run for Assembly earlier this year his campaign has successfully raised over $40,000.

Maher stated, “One of the hardest things a candidate can do in a campaign is to go to people and ask them for money. I have been so overwhelmed by the support shown to me by so many. A large percentage of my donations come from those who may not have a lot to give, but they, like me, care about their community and the direction of our state. Our fundraising is on par with that of an incumbent Member of Assembly. We are raising the funds we need to make this a successful and competitive race.”

Maher further stated, “Unlike my opponent in the primary, I am not an Albany insider. So every dollar we raise helps us wage a competitive grass roots race for the Republican and Conservative nomination. We have had to create a campaign operation from the bottom up. My opponent has an established campaign operation already in place and will have the ability tap an army of party committee members, county chairs, Albany insiders, PAC’s and special interests to help her campaign. We will rely on the support of the people.”

Mr. Maher’s opponent in the primary, Claudia Tenney, a Utica area Assemblywoman, is now running for the new 101st District after her Oneida County based district was eliminated under recent redistricting. Ms. Tenney filed her financial reports this week showing lackluster fundraising and a $30,000 personal loan to her campaign. Tenney only raised just over $10,000 in the same period in which Maher raised over $26,000. After expenses and without the emergency loan to her campaign, Tenney would have had less cash on hand than Maher. Tenney’s campaign financials from July also show a majority of her funds came from corporate donations or PAC’s.

While Maher concedes Tenney will now be able to brag that she has more money on file than he does, he is not fazed one bit after looking over her report. “Like most residents of the 101st, I do not have $30,000 lying around with nothing to do. I cannot loan my campaign such a large sum so that I can buy an election. My personal money goes to buy gas for my car, putting food on my table and paying my bills. It is time to send someone to Albany who understands those daily struggles.”

Maher concluded, “My campaign relies on community support to help us compete in this race and, so far, that support has been amazing. Everything we have in our campaign is because of the hard work and support of every day folks. I do not forget that when I am out on the campaign trail and I will take that same “outsider’ approach with me as the representative of this district in Albany.”

The donations to Maher’s campaign have gone to good use. The campaign has a fully functioning headquarters and is getting fully stocked and prepared with necessary supplies for a campaign in one of the most gerrymandered districts in recent New York history. The new 101st District stretches from Northern Orange County and snakes its way through portions of Ulster, Sullivan, Delaware, Otsego and Herkimer counties before reaching its end in southeastern Oneida County.